WUF13 opens in Baku with focus on housing, resilience and global urban reform
The 13th Session of the World Urban Forum (WUF13) opened in Baku with ministers, UN officials and urban policy leaders. Participants call for ...
Two freight trains departed from the Chinese cities of Chongqing and Chengdu bound for Europe via Türkiye on the 9 July marking the first direct rail shipment under the new regular freight service along the Middle Corridor, according to the Turkish Ministry of Transport and Infrastructure.
Transport Minister Abdulkadir Uraloğlu described the development as the start of a “new era” in the East–West logistics chain and emphasised Türkiye’s strategic role on this route.
Each train, carrying 2,000 metric tonnes of cargo, has already travelled approximately 3,500 kilometres within China and crossed into Kazakhstan. The route continues through Central Asia and across the Caspian Sea before reaching Türkiye, and then onwards to Europe.
Uraloğlu noted that the agreement enabling this service was signed during the Global Transport Corridors Forum held in Istanbul at the end of June. The deal strengthens Türkiye’s position in the Europe–Asia logistics network.
Over the past 23 years, Türkiye has invested around $300 billion in transport and communication infrastructure. Its railway network has expanded to 13,919 kilometres, including 2,251 kilometres of high-speed rail.
The Minister highlighted plans for 1,000 trains to operate along the Middle Corridor annually, which will bolster Türkiye’s role as an alternative transit hub in regional and global trade.
He added that the Middle Corridor will continue to develop through expanded cooperation with Asian and European countries, especially China, under the broader Development Road initiative.
Bulgaria has won the Eurovision Song Contest for the first time, taking victory in a final overshadowed by a boycott over Israel’s participation and the war in Gaza.
At least eight people were injured after a driver rammed a car into pedestrians in the northern Italian city of Modena, authorities said on Saturday. Four of the victims were reported to be in serious condition.
U.S. President Donald Trump said Washington could destroy Iran’s infrastructure “in two days,” while Tehran warned the U.S. would face growing economic costs from the conflict. The remarks came as Hezbollah reported new attacks on Israeli forces despite an extended Lebanon ceasefire.
At least eight people have died and 32 others were injured after a freight train collided with a public bus at a railway crossing in Bangkok on Saturday (16 May), triggering a fire that quickly spread through the vehicle.
Iran’s Parliamentary Speaker Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf warned that the U.S. military blockade of Iran’s southern ports could trigger a new global financial crisis as the Tehran-Washington standoff around the strategic Strait of Hormuz persists.
Thousands of displaced families in Gaza are facing growing infestations of rats and insects as worsening sanitation conditions and mounting waste deepen the humanitarian crisis across overcrowded camps, according to the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East.
Uzbekistan has launched a nationwide environmental initiative titled ‘Day Without Cars’, which will take place twice a month as part of efforts to improve air quality and reduce vehicle emissions.
The thirteenth session of the World Urban Forum will open in Baku on Sunday, bringing together government representatives, city leaders, urban planners, international organisations, businesses and civil society to discuss the future of sustainable urban development.
Matiul Haq Khalis, Director General of Afghanistan’s National Environmental Protection Agency, has travelled to Baku to attend the 13th World Urban Forum, where climate change and safer cities will be discussed.
Children laughed, applauded and watched wide-eyed as animated characters lit up the screen at the opening of the ninth Animafilm International Animation Festival in Baku, where filmmakers and audiences from around the world gathered to celebrate the growing influence of animated cinema.
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